Assailants attack Honduran TV journalist

Unidentified
assailants attacked a television host in the city of Puerto Cortés on July 17,
2013, according to news reports.

Joel Coca, who hosts
the news show "Más Noticias" (More News) on local TV station Channel 12, was
leaving the television studios after 9 p.m. when he was attacked by two
unidentified assailants, according to press reports. One of the attackers
hit Coca with a wooden baseball bat in his back, while the other one beat his
head with the butt of a gun.

News reports cited
Coca as saying that one of the attackers shouted, "Kill him, kill him" before fleeing the scene. The
journalist sought treatment at a local hospital for injuries to his right hand,
which included two fractured fingers.

Coca, who is also a
correspondent for the San Pedro Sula-based TV station Channel 11, said he
believed the attack was related to his reportson local corruption that
had recently aired on Channel 12, the press reported. He did not specify any
particular articles that might have provoked the episode.

Coca has filed a
police complaint and said he is trying to leave Honduras and seek refuge in
another country because he fears for his life, according to press reports.